"The new name recognizes the strong and effective support for
science that has been a hallmark of Senator Domenici's long
career in public service," said Dr. Fred Lo, NRAO Director.

New Mexico Tech President Daniel H. Lopez said Sen. Domenici
has always been a supporter of science and research in Socorro
and throughout the state.

"He's been a statesman for New Mexico, the nation -- and without
exaggeration -- for the world," Lopez said. "Anyone with that
track record deserves this recognition."

Van Romero, Tech vice president of research and economic development,
has served as the university's main lobbyist in Washington, D.C.,
for more than a decade. He said Sen. Domenici has always been
receptive to new ideas and willing to take risks.

"Over the years, Sen. Domenici has always had time to listen to our
needs and goals," Romero said. "He has served as a champion of New
Mexico Tech's causes and we owe him a debt of gratitude for all his
efforts over the decades."

Originally dedicated in 1988, the center houses offices and laboratories
that support VLA and VLBA operations. The center also supports work on
the VLA modernization project and on the international
Atacama Large
Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) project. Work on ALMA at the
Socorro center and at the ALMA Test Facility at the VLA site west of
Socorro has focused on developing and testing equipment to be deployed
at the ALMA site in Chile's Atacama Desert. The research facility, part
of the National Science Foundation-funded NRAO, was located on the
NM Tech campus through a joint Federal-State effort spearheaded by
Domenici.

"Senator Domenici has worked hard over the years to support research
both at New Mexico Tech and at the NRAO, and our facility on the New
Mexico Tech campus is a symbol of that support. It's highly appropriate
to name it after him," said Dr. Ethan Schreier, President of
Associated
Universities Inc., which operates the NRAO for the National Science
Foundation.

Senator Domenici helped make New Mexico Tech's
Magdalena Ridge Observatory
(MRO) a reality and provided essential support for NRAO's VLA and VLBA.
MRO is one of the world's most technologically-advanced optical
observatories. The VLA is the most scientifically-productive ground-based
telescope in the history of astronomy.

"Both these facilities will advance the frontiers of 21st-Century
astrophysics, and keep our state and its research community in the
forefront of science worldwide," said Dr. Robert Dickman, NRAO's
Director for New Mexico Operations.

During the Reagan Administration, Domenici sponsored the legislation that
allowed the university to use the "M" Mountain range for research and testing.

Lopez said the U.S. Department of the Interior would not let the university
conduct testing on the range. A high level bureaucrat told Laurence Lattman,
then the president of Tech, that it "would take an act of Congress" for
Tech to have unlimited access to the land.

Domenici sponsored the legislation -- signed by Reagan -- that gave Tech
access to the land.

Over the years, Domenici's support has helped Tech launch the homeland
security training program in Playas, the
EarthScope research and other
anti-terrorism training programs.

"All these projects benefit New Mexico Tech," Lopez said. "But these
programs also benefit the nation. Senator Domenici has always been
careful to make sure that federal money went to programs that benefit
the entire nation."